Family

I know that choosing a Word of the Year is definitely not something new but hearing this phrase each December usually makes me want to crawl under a rock and hide. Seriously! I get upset that I cannot just pick some magic word that will make the next year fall into place. I sometimes just cannot decide where to place the focus in my life if it should be business, marriage or homeschool.

This year I kinda fell into a word that makes sense and that will help support my Goals for 2018. My Word of the Year for 2018 is INTENTIONAL. My newsletter explains how it came to be which you can read all about my Word of the Year here!

The purpose of this post is to help give you ideas of how to choose a Word of the Year whether you are married or single, whether you homeschool or send your kids off to school, whether you work from home or head to the office or maybe do not work at all. You too can have a Word of the Year that brings you hope and purpose not despair!

This post is in partnership with Britax and SheBuysCars for the Britax Infant Car Seat Launch Campaign.

Child Passenger Safety has been a passion of mine for MANY years. Since my children are now ages 4-14 they are all out of infant seats but not out of 5 pt. harness car seats. I used to be a CPST (Child Passenger Safety Technician) so I learned a lot about all the mistakes that can be made when installing a car seat.

AWE- is the best way to describe how Lil’ Red reacted to his first fireworks. We park at a city park two bridges away from where the fireworks are shot off. This allows us an incredible view without hurting our necks or EARS. The sky was clear of clouds which made the booms even quieter this year.

Lil’ Red was in the van with me nursing when the first boom shot off. He turned his head quickly and his eyes lit up! No more nummy nums for him. We got out of the car and he started raising his hands in the air. He was shaking them in delight. Sometimes both hands sometimes one hand but he was very excited at the sights and sounds. If he had not liked the sights and sounds then I would have stayed in the van with him for a much quieter evening.

We always pack our jackets, camp chairs, blankets, and bedtime snacks for fireworks each year. We put little ones in their jammies and bring some fun things to do while we wait for the first booms to be shot off. We bring battery powered glow sticks for younger ones and sparklers for older kids which are highly supervised with dad, aunt, and uncle and just 4 kids!

Safety first is our family motto when fun involves anything remotely dangerous! Everyone gets a sparkler that is lit one at a time and then everyone spreads far out so that no one runs into each other or accidentally hits someone with a burning hot stick!

Being a mother of four children is a tough job. Being a mother of a child with Type 1 Diabetes adds yet another layer of responsibility. You see, when you have a child with a need, be it medical, temporary or lifelong, you must be your child’s best advocate!

I have to come to realize that this is true for many parents whether they have a special needs child in school or homeschool. If you have a child that requires extra care or concerns then you must fight for your child because no one else will. No one else will know how to love and care for your child like you, the parent, know how to do.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Dr Pepper®. The opinions and text are all mine.

What do all busy families have in common? Lack of family time! Crazy hectic schedules either from multiple children in sports or therapy appointments to parents work schedules usually don’t allow a lot of family time. Making family time a priority can be very hard in certain seasons of life but it still is very important to enjoy family time.

Outdoor Family Time

Taking the children outside to throw a ball or jump rope or ride bikes are great ways to enjoy some family time at home. You can plant a garden or go on a bug hunt to get fresh air and engage in an activity together. Learning, growing and laughing together are all important aspects of family time!

Indoor Family Time

Cooking and eating a meal together is one of our favorite ways to spend time together indoors. Whether it’s cooking a new recipe, or whipping up an old favorite! Board games as well as playing hide and seek indoors are some other great ways to spend time with children of all ages!

Family Time Away From Home

Whether going to the grocery store or park; spending time together as a family can be done just about anywhere. Our family enjoys going to the movie theater even though we don’t get to very often. Even Lil’ Red has been able to sit through a feature film as long as 90 minutes!

Did you know that Wonder Woman the movie is coming to theaters soon? Everyone in our family has an affinity for super heroes! What’s even better is the opportunity to save $5 on your movie ticket with the purchase of 2 participating Dr Pepper 24-packs (or 12-pack, 8-pack 12 oz. or 7.5 oz cans) found at Walmart!

This offer can ONLY be found on Wonder Woman Limited Edition Dr Pepper cans purchased at Walmart. Since the Wonder Woman movie comes out on June 2nd, 2017 you will want to have your Dr Pepper products purchased before they run out!

Here’s the list of the specific products to look for in order to take advantage of that $5 movie ticket offer:

Dr Pepper (24-pack, 12-pack, 8-pack 12 oz or 7.5 oz cans)

Diet Dr Pepper (24-pack, 12-pack, 8-pack 12 oz or 7.5 oz cans)

Dr Pepper Cherry (24-pack, 12-pack, 8-pack 12 oz or 7.5 oz cans)

Diet Dr Pepper Cherry (24-pack, 12-pack, 8-pack 12 oz or 7.5 oz cans)

So what are you waiting for? Gather up your family and head to Walmart to pick up some Dr Pepper (with Wonder Woman themed packaging) so you can enjoy the Wonder Woman movie at Fandango movie theaters in June!